Pink Halo
by Indywrites
Summary: Lily has met a beautiful woman from an online dating site, but when he sees her in person, she's much more than what he originally anticipated. (Not good at summaries. Dx) Also Late Entry for Shalily Week 2018. Day 7: Delight


**AN:** Late entry for Shalily Week 2018 and also doubles as a late one-shot request for a friend. Hope you guys like it.

 **Disclaimer: I do not own FairyTail or its characters. Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima**

 **Pink Halo**

"She's late." Ten minutes. She was ten minutes late. Lily bit his lip in concern as he pulled the cuffs of his sleeves down covering up his watch. His foot tapped anxiously under the table, trying his best to hide his wrecked nerves.

Did something happen? Maybe she got sidetracked, or maybe the traffic was too much, the streets did look pretty busy tonight. Yeah, that had to be it. Lily would be lying if he said he didn't have high hopes for this one. Shagotte Extalia was the name of the woman he was beckoning to meet that evening. They had first communicated online through a dating site; one that Gajeel, his best friend, had forcefully talked him into signing up for. He had always commented on how he needed a life outside of just going to work and the gym, and sitting at home wasn't really his style.

Lily had always been a natural romantic, and all women were bewitched by his irresistible charm, that, on top of his handsome features, had females swarming like bees to try their chances with him. He had to admit, at first he loathed the idea of online dating, there seemed to be no point to it, and it was a blow to his pride. He felt like it made me look like he was desperate, which he most certainly was not. Sure, he wanted to find a pretty woman one day, sure, he wanted to get married and have a decent sized family, but he wanted to do it at his own pace, at his own time, he didn't feel ready to jump into anything, not yet.

His first matchup was an absolute disaster. Not only was the girl super talkative, but she was also very self-centered and full of herself. She didn't even give him a chance to speak before she started talking about 'I, I, I,' and 'me, me, me,' and he noticed the signs of a compulsive gold digger. Once it was time to leave, Lily was more than ready to go, he was out of there faster than his date had mentally calculated the worth of his outfit.

The dates after weren't as bad, but not nearly as good as he would've liked them to go, the girls weren't very interesting. They were more awkward and uneasy, and that made him uncomfortable. But Shagotte, she…well, she seemed different.

Lily messaged first; to say he was nervous was an understatement. Her profile picture was so beautiful, it was intimidating to even look at. He thought there was no way she would consider talking to him. None whatsoever, but surprising enough, here they are now; two weeks later, meeting in person for their first official date. Well, what's supposed to be their first date at least.

The dark man craned his neck to peek at the entrance, hoping to see his date arrive through the doors, for what would seem like the hundredth time that night. Was she a no-show? If she wanted to cancel she would have messaged or called him, right? He'd given her his phone number - days ago.

Lily sulked as he gazed longingly at the empty seat before him. He sighed then took another sip out of his nearly empty glass of water. He lifted the cuff of his sleeve checking his watch again. He frowned his scarred brow furrowing. Fifteen minutes. Exasperated and irritated, He ran his hand over his face. He knew this was too good to be true. Eyes closed in defeat, he let out a final sigh, about to move his hand to signal the waitress for the check.

"Panther?"

His eyes opened slowly to the sound of a feminine voice saying his name."Yes, that'll be…?" The wind was nearly knocked from his lungs at the sight before him. Breathtaking was only one of the many words he could describe the beauty that he saw. The sight literally took his breath away, rendering him utterly speechless.

Peppering smooth pale skin were dozens of light freckles all over her face, while snowy strands swirled like a crown on the top of her head with tiny fine curls framing her beautiful heart shaped face.

"Shagotte?" The name came out in a questionable gasp.

A breath of relief escaped her glossy pink lips at the sound of her name. The woman's worried expression disappeared as she nodded, her dangling earring chiming with her movements as they shined. "Yes. I'm so terribly sorry. Please forgive my tardiness. It was not my intention to be late, honest."

Lily didn't even give himself time to think before he abruptly stood from his seat and walked to her side. She was much shorter than he expected, he felt like a giant standing next to her as he dwarfed her small frame. "It's alright miss. I'm just glad you could make it." Smiling brightly he offered a hand to her. "Panther Lily,"

She looked up at him, her smile bright with happiness. Placing her small pale hand into his much larger and darker one she shook it with a surprisingly firm grip making Lily's smile widen. "Shagotte Extalia. It's nice to finally meet you in person Mr. Lily."

"Likewise." Releasing her hand he pulled the chair out from the table. "Here," he gestured his hand to the chair. "Please have a seat."

Puzzled, the petite woman looked at the chair than at the dark man dwarfing her small frame, quite caught off guard by his impeccable manners. "Why, aren't you the gentleman." Smiling she took the chair and sat placing her clutch in her lap then smoothing out the wrinkles on her silk blush colored dress. "Thank you."

Pushing her chair in behind her, Lily let his eyes wander not able to ignore her rather captivating attire. The dress she wore was one of cocktail design and nearly hung off her shoulders revealing the kisses of countless beauty marks on her collarbone and neck. From directly above he awed at the complex abstraction of her chosen hairstyle for the evening, it really was something. Against the dimly lit restaurant lights he could've sworn he saw a pink aura highlight her beautiful features, like a halo.

Lily wasn't the type of person who cared much about appearances, but she sure had made a very good first impression, despite her being terribly late.

Walking back to his chair pushing himself in with a smile bright on his face and a newly found light in his eyes, feeling in a much better mood than he was a few minutes before. "You look very stunning tonight Ms. Extalia." Lily tried for a compliment to break the ice, even though it was quite forward and he couldn't bring himself _not_ to tell her out loud.

Looking up at him, the woman touched her face feeling a blush ripening on her cheeks at the comment. "Oh please, no need for formalities. Just Shagotte is fine."

Lily nodded, his smile not faltering. "Then just Lily for me then, that's what all my friends call me."

A delighted giggle left her lips, reminding him of the sounds of wind chimes, soft and beautiful. "Thank you for your kind compliment, Lily. I'm flattered."

"You're very welcome."

"And I must say, " The young woman paused tilting her head to the side with a smile. "You're much taller than I imagined and built too." Her smile widened and her eyes sparkled. "You're quite handsome, your profile picture doesn't do you justice."

A wave of pride swelled in his chest. At least he knew she liked what she saw because he most certainly enjoyed the view from his end. "Well, I'm glad I could exceed your expectations."

"I apologize again for being so late, I haven't really made a good first impression of myself. I promise I'm actually much more punctual."

"I'm quite curious to know as to why you're late if you don't mind sharing."

"Well-"

"Excuse me" the couple looked up to see a waitress standing by the table. "Forgive me for intruding, I just wanted to see if you would like drinks to start off the evening."

"Oh, no need to apologize," Shagotte replied politely. "It's actually my first time here. What sort of drinks do you have to offer?"

This same waitress had come to Lily a couple times that night. He was impressed and rather grateful that she hadn't hinted the fact that he had been there longer than his fair share. "May I recommend our house white? It's a semi-dry from California, very popular, and refreshing with hints of grapefruit and peach. I can give you a sample if you like."

Lily gave her a huge grin and was about to nod before he saw Shagotte raise her hand, declining the offer. "Although that sounds very nice, however, unfortunately, I will have to decline." She turned her eyes towards her lap with a pink blush appearing on her cheeks.

The waitress then looked over at Lily with the same bright smile. "How about you sir? Would you like to have a sample, it's quite delicious."

Lily glanced over at the woman across the table. He saw her eyes look up at him as a hesitant smile ghosted her lips. He normally wouldn't mind having a drink or two, he was very good at holding his alcohol, then again he wasn't a very big drinker anyway. It was very clear that Shagotte wasn't a very big fan of the substance and the last thing he wanted to do was make her feel uncomfortable. Shaking his head Lily replied "Thank you, but no thank you, ma'am. But I think it would be best if we had sparkling water instead." He looked back across the table "is that alright with you?"

Biting her lip, the woman nodded her earrings dangling with her movements as she replied. "Yes, that would be wonderful actually."

Lily nodded. "Then that's what we'll have."

The waitress smiled and replied, "It'll be back shortly."

Shagotte's gaze remained on her lap avoiding the man's watchful gaze towards her. They remained that way in silence, the atmosphere becoming increasingly awkward the longer neither of them spoke. Lily scratched his neck nervously, not sure of what to say to break the ice.

"I'm sorry"

Lily rose an eyebrow in confusion at her sudden apology. "For what? You didn't do anything wrong."

Shagotte's cheeks flushed as she became tense, gripping her clutch bag in her lap. "I've haven't had the best experience with alcohol so…" She paused biting her lip hard.

Lily rose his hand smiling. "You don't have to explain, I understand. I just don't want you to be uncomfortable. Let's enjoy tonight, shall we?"

The woman looked back up to him with a sense of sweetness in her eyes, a sweetness Lily could get used to seeing for hours on end. "Yes, let's."

The night seemed to go by like a blur. Like time was disappearing in an instant. They seemed to click so easily and they had so much in common yet they were different at the same time. He found out very quickly that her laugh was the most beautiful thing he'd ever heard in his entire life and that he couldn't believe he lived as long as he had without hearing it.

She told him about her job as an elementary school teacher and what she did for fun with her free time, completely forgetting to give the reason she was late; however at this point, Lily was enjoying himself too much to ask or to even care. He found himself loving the sound of her voice the more she spoke. Her accent was extremely profound and so very proper as if she was raised from royalty itself. He caught himself wondering if their children would sound like that - if they were to have any, but he quickly shook that thought out of his mind, not wanting to jump that far ahead. Especially on a first date!

The petite woman reminded him so much of the books he'd read about young women who captured a man's heart with just a smile and a look of adoration, but he never in his life imagined himself falling victim of something he'd only read about in the fiction world. Before they knew it, their food had come and gone along with their drinks. It was about that time to be leaving the restaurant, considering they were the last ones remaining.

Lily left a hefty tip under his dinner plate and paid the ticket with his card. The waitress had taken it and brought it back with a smile, bidding the couple a good night.

Walking out the door Shagotte held her hand out asking to take a look at the receipt he had received, but Lily, being the gentleman he was, smiled and politely denied her request, cramming the folded piece of paper in his pants pocket. Shagotte responded with a disappointed childish pout. Lily chuckled at her reaction but refused to budge, knowing she'd probably feel guilty seeing the price he'd paid for them to dine at such an expensive restaurant, but to him, it worth every single penny.

The woman suddenly stopped at the entryway, her small clutch folded in her hands. "I suppose this is where we part ways."

Lily turned to her, brows knitting tight.

Seeing the confusion in his eyes, she lightly giggled. "I have to call an Uber to take me home. It may take a minute but one should be here soon."

Lily's eyes widened at her comment. On instinct he looked around them, although some of the street lights were lit, it was very late and he knew better than to leave a beautiful woman like her alone in the city like this. He took a deep breath, taking a step forward. "Actually, if you'd like Shagotte," He started hesitantly. "I would be more than happy to give you a lift home. I wouldn't want you being out here alone by yourself. It's quite dangerous."

The woman averted her eyes from him taking a step back. She bit her lip hard while rubbing her arm with her hand. "Thank you, truly but…I don't know." Her voice was soft, he could sense a hint of uneasiness in it. He could tell by the way her legs shook, and her hard rubs on her arms that she must have had a disturbing experience with a similar situation.

Lily took another step forward offering his arm. "Miss, I assure you, you have nothing to be afraid of, I swear." He gave her the most handsome smile making the woman blush under his gentle gaze. "Please allow me to drive you home."

Shagotte stared up at him for what felt like hours until she finally took a step forward, tucking her small hand under his large bicep. Her blush intensified feeling the prominent muscle flex under her touch. Even though this was her first time meeting the man, after sharing dinner with him and sharing the most pleasant conversation, Shagotte couldn't help but imagine herself being embraced by these same arms that were so close to her.

Lily smiled placing his hand on top of hers. "Let's go. My car is this way." It didn't take them long to walk a couple blocks to reach a black car with blue rims. Shagotte smiled impressed with his taste. The car wasn't fancy but she could tell it was well kept. Lily released her hand, digging into his pocket to get his keys to unlock the door. Once unlocked he quickly reached for the passenger door for her, bowing and gesturing her to step in.

"Thank you," Shagotte giggled stepping into the vehicle, bottom first, then sliding her legs in. Lily didn't know exactly why, but her properness made him want to know more about her. The way she sat, the way she talked, everything about her intrigued him.

He closed the door then quickly rushed to his side, closing the door, buckling his seat belt, then started the ignition. "Now, where to, Miss Extalia?"

Shagotte took out her phone punching in letters and numbers into it before presenting it to the man behind the wheel. "North Queen Blvd 6492, Apt. 34, I hope it's not too much out of your way."

Lily didn't even have to think about it before smiling. "Oh no, it's not at all. I'll get you there in no time." He didn't know how it happened, but the car ride was even more enjoyable than the dinner. They had the same taste in music and liked the same radio station. She laughed uncontrollably at his stories and jokes. And God, that laugh, he wanted to record it and play it on repeat endlessly. Before they knew it they had arrived at her address. The place she lived was beautiful, rose bushes placed in front of every door. She must be pretty well off to afford such a place.

He stopped the car, jumping out and opening up the passenger door, once more offering his large hand to help her out of the car, which she took gladly. She grabbed her clutch and tucking her hand into the crook of his arm she leaned into his warmth as he closed the door behind him walking her to her apartment door.

She stopped in front of it, looking up to him, giving him another one of those heartstopping smiles. He wouldn't ever grow tired of those. She bowed her head deeply. "Thank you so much, Panther. I don't know what I can do to show my gratitude for your kindness."

Taking a step forward, he grasped her hand to bring it to his lips, giving the back of her hand a tender peck before suggesting in a knee-weakening tone, "How about doing me the honor of accepting a second date?"

Shagotte had to work to contain her composure. Her heart was exploding with joy and happiness, and it took everything not to scream, 'yes!' She combed a stray strand of her long hair behind her ear. " I would quite enjoy that a lot."

Lily smiled, satisfied with her answer. He rose to his full height, towering above her once more. "Alright then. I look forward to meeting with you again, Shagotte."

"As do I."

With a smile and a deep bow, Lily, his voice, seductive and throaty, said, "Good night."

Shagotte lips curved into a gentle smile. "Good night to you as well. Drive safely."

Lily chuckled and nodded as he waved his hand as he turns his back to her. To think he would be hooked on a woman he'd just met. He was a goner from the instant she 'd stepped into his life. Panther Lily was a prisoner of love, but he had no wish to escape from this captor. He would gladly remain in the cage that was ruled by the breathtaking white-haired angel with the pink halo.

 _ **~ShalilyQueen**_


End file.
